The recent interest in water quality which has been generated by the growing concern for the ecology of the earth has resulted in the surprising discovery that little is known about what constitues clean water and what compounds found in bodies of water should be labelled pollutants. Furthermore, the methods and techniques employed in sampling water to ascertain its quality vary greatly, the results varying as the method employed. One approach to ascertaining the extent and significance of surface pollution of large bodies of water is to collect and evaluate the surface floatage on the water. This floatage may include substances varying in size from large floating particulates such as feathers and insects to fine microparticulates, bacteria, surface plankton, and surface-active molecules. Prior art devices, which are generally oriented toward removing oil slicks or collecting other specific floatage, cannot collect all of the floatage in the described range of size. Further, much of the surface floatage material has the property of sinking mementarily when encountering any water turbulence. Thus, an effective sampler of surface floatage must skim the surface water without creating any leading turbulence. Prior art devices avoid this problem by scooping the water below the surface as well to ensure catching any sinking floatage. These devices, however, collect submerged as well as surface floatage.